tin anniversary

English

WOTD – 12 December 2012

Etymology

From the practice, popularised during the Victorian era, of giving gifts made out of specific materials on particular wedding anniversaries, such as tin for the tenth.

Pronunciation

• (US) IPA^(key): /ˈtɪn ænɪˌvɜɹsəɹi/, /ˈtɪn ænəˌvɜɹsəɹi/

• Audio (General Australian):

  (file)

Noun

tin anniversary (plural tin anniversaries)

1. (informal) The tenth anniversary of something, especially a wedding.
   • 1977 September 9, “The Golden Landmark”, in The Sumter Daily Item:

     And a couple marrying at age 65 today can look forward to their tin anniversary, or at least 10 years of marriage.

   • 1991 July 30, Craig R. Whitney, “An Anniversary Dinner That's a Feast for Gossips”, in The New York Times:

     Their tin anniversary [Prince Charles and Princess Diana's] today has been kicked around by Fleet Street so hard it almost rattles, but millions of Britons and other royal-watchers around the world are wont to hear all the dirt, making publishers of racy newspapers and glossy magazines rich.

   • 2011 May 17, Jameson Berkow, “Bootup: Major Apple product launch rumoured for Thursday”, in Financial Post:

     The connection to a possible launch is that Apple opened its first two retail stores on that date in 2001; suggesting the Cupertino, Calif.-based company might be planning something special to celebrate its tin anniversary.

Synonyms

• decaversary (informal, rare), decennial

Translations

10th anniversary of a wedding

• Finnish: tinahäät pl